At the exit of Quake II appears new a MOD , Action Quake 2 . Minh the, more known under the name of Gooseman, works in the team of the play as a modeller 3D, developing in particular the characters, like as a coder. Jess Cliffe, on its side, joined the official site in 1998 to take part in the creation of charts. Thus the two originators met.

Minh has It then desire for creating its clean MOD , mixing weapons, counter-terrorism and multijouor on line, with an only aim of diverting the community free. It presents its idea to Jess Cliffe which, enchanted, initially joined it as a Webmestre. It is besides the latter which will find the name of Counter-Strike . At the same time left a new handset, Half-Life . Accompanied by a Kit of development, allowing to the creation of charts, of decorations, characters,…, they turned to this solution.

The development of the play then begins, without budget, but with a Moteur of play provided free, the GoldSource. Over their spare time, Minh deals of the modeling and the programming, whereas Jess Cliffe takes care of the 2D, of the sounds, the software of installation and the Internet site, which made it possible MOD to be made known. The charts of play as for them are carried out by mappeurs of TEAM Fortress that Minh discharged It, like by the community of fans which is formed gradually around the play.

The first beta of MOD left on June 19th, 1999 concerned video. The play starts then with really making speak about him on Internet. The two originators are very with the listening of the players and correct all very quickly the brought back bugs, while adding to the play the functionalities which are puffed up for them. The versions of the play are connected thus with sharp pace, sometimes separating them from less than one week. At that time, MOD had already made success, being the online game more played, much more than of large commercial plays like Quake III and Unreal Tournament .

Arrive then Valve Software, the editor of Half-Life , which had heard of the play. The company then proposes to repurchase the rights of the play, which accepts Minh It and Jess Cliffe, which are recruited besides as programmers and originators of video game by the company. The final version, the 1.0, left on November 8th, 2000 concerned video, under the name of Half-Life: Counter-Strike and signed Valve. The play remains free, but requires, as it was envisaged at the beginning it development, to have a version of the original play, i.e. Half-Life .

The multijoueurs parts of Counter-Strike on Internet function at the origin with the service WON, which was closed in 2004 with the arrival of version 1.6 of the play, forcing the players to pass on the platform Steam. However, vis-a-vis this obligation which implied many advertizing communications, some players created their own service, called WON2. Whatever the means of connection, Counter-Strike joins together today one of the greatest communities of players in the world, of any nationality.

Since the passage to the Steam platform, it is possible to buy and download the play alone for 10 euros. In spite of the years which pass, Valve continues still today patcher its play: the last update dated March 6th, 2007 concerned video.

Success and influence

Reception of criticisms

The videoludic press accommodated Counter-Strike very well. Metacritic raises an average note of 88% with a maximum note of 100%. Game Rankings raises as for him an average note of 89% with an also maximum note of 100%. Gamekult.com note play 9/10, GameSpot.com gives him one 8,4/10 and GameSpot.fr allots one to him 9/10. “To have, quite simply”, Gamekult concludes.

The journalists qualify his Gameplay of excellent and stress that the realization is more than correct for simple a MOD . They also notice the many and varied weapons, and the diversified scenarios. Graphic qualities and sound of the play, without being exceptional, are suitable for the time. Lastly, they applaud the exemption from payment of the play, the success obtained from the players and the number of waiters available. They criticize nevertheless some bugs at the exit of the play and the sometimes monotonous parts.

Counter-Strike also gained several rewards and rose in several classifications, chronologically :

• Best Online Range (2000) - Old Gaming
• Action Range off the Year (2000) - Gamepen.com
• Action Range off the Year (2000) - Actiontrip.com
• Rookie Studio Award (2001) - Range Developers Choice Awards
• 29e in the GameSpy' S 2001 Signal 50 Ranges off All Time - GameSpy
• 83e in IGN' S 2003 List off 100 Greatest Ranges off All Time - IGN
• 49e in the GameFAQ' S 2005 Signal 100 Ranges off All Time - GameFAQ' S
• 71e in IGN' S 2005 List off 100 Greatest Ranges off All Time - IGN
• 12th in the Signal 2007 of the 105 best FPS of all times - NoFrag

Reaction of the players

Counter-Strike became, as of the exit of its first beta in 1999, the play of subjective shooting multijouor in line of reference. He is still, eight years after his exit, the game more played in LAN-party and on Internet.

The first reason of this success is borrowed from the original play, Half-Life . Based on a modified version of the Driving of play Quake engine of Id Software and left in November 1998, it is promoted by the press and receives price and rewards the ones after the others. The sales of the play explode quickly, and the community of players increases very quickly. The play thus meets success after two years of development and successive advertisements. Arrive then new a MOD, name of Counter-Strike , in free downloading for all those having Half-Life . Thus, the play is easily made know and a great number of players have access there. The price of Half-Life drops, making it available to the greatest number, and the word of mount like the promotion of the play, presented like the successor of Quake 2, in the rooms of network game makes its effect. The second reason of its success lies in the hardware configuration minimum necessary. The “ in gamerboom ” extends besides today, thanks to the progression of the ADSL, towards another type of online game, MMOG.

Counter-Strike is the game multijoueurs more played since his version 1.5. As of the summer 2001, the play enters 9  000 waiters on Internet. April 26th, 2002 concerned video, on the Web site Clubic.com, 60  000 remote loadings of Counter-Strike 1.4 took place in only one day. In 2007, GameSpy enters on average 85  000 players simultaneously, and that whatever the hour of measurement, which accounts for 35% of the players of Jeu of subjective shooting on Internet. Always according to GameSpy, all confused versions of Counter-Strike ( CS1.6 , CS: CZ and CS: S ) account surroundings 167  471 players, is 67% of the players of play of subjective shooting on Internet. A player is thus always sure to find somebody with whom to play, which is in is another reason of the popularity of the play, in addition to in being the proof.

Counter-Strike then influenced others mods , like Urban Terror , MOD of Quake III Arena , or Tactical Ops: Assault one Terror , MOD of Unreal Tournament , as well as truths plays, like Total Operations or Soldier off Fortune II: Double Helix . The play also became a true cultural phenomenon. cartoons in line, such as Concerned , and of many vidéos, those of Pure Pwnage, also seemed on Internet, referring to the play, as this one made success. Derivative products also exist: Figurine S, Self-adhesive S, Tee-shirt S, Affiche S. the video game is the subject also of competitions whose media are made the echo and of the film adaptations multiply. One also attends the advent of a new form of Addiction, the “compulsif play”.

First place in E-Sport

Counter-Strike is an engine of the electronic Sport, after its emergence with Quake and StarCraft . It gathers several aspects of the sporting spirit - team work, competition, equal opportunity, drive - and with its success, it is logical that the play gave to a great number of players the desire of competition. Thus, for several years, from the teams, or in teams , have been born on Internet, in general made up of five players, with an aim of clashing in Match S. When there are conclusive results, these teams really develop, with trainers, regular managers, sponsors and drives until becoming true Club S. So that as of 2001, in Scandinavia, Germany, with the Netherlands, in England and France, appear the first professional teams, which traverse the continent of Europe to dispute matches sponsored by large companies. The phenomenon was then exported with the the United States, where one finds the first tournaments with very large rewards (first price going up with 150  000$). To make the parts more dynamic, the handles had to the maximum 2 minutes.

Counter-Strike is always, into semi-2007, the play of subjective shooting headlight of the LAN-party and international competitions. Its principal continuation, Counter-Strike: source, is not able besides to be essential, although this last is an official play of the Championship Gaming Series. This is an main issue, because the organizers of these competitions have more and more evil to find sponsors in the medium of data processing. Indeed, Counter-Strike 1.6 date of 1999, functions on not very powerful configuration S and attracts the new players less and less.

Continuations of the play

Valve Software benefitted from the success of Counter-Strike 1.6 to widen its panel of plays. Thus, the first following being born was a version Xbox of Counter-Strike , left on December 5th, 2003 concerned video for 60 euros and in any point identical to the version PC. Graphic quality is the same one, in spite of the technological capacities of the console much more thorough than that of the computers of 1999. Moreover, the Gameplay suffers from the passage to the Joystick, whereas the unit keyboard/mouse is exemplary for this standard of play. The editor added to the play a mode solo, but the pleasure is not there, the Artificial intelligence club-footed being far from being perfect. Lastly, the title also has its mode Multijoueur, playable up to 16 via the Xbox Live paying. However, the press is not unanimous: Gamekult.com gives 5/10 to the play and Gaming allots 4/10 to him, whereas Joypad and Video games Magazine notes it respectively 7/10 and 14/20.

Following this play, Valve Software undertook to carry out new a opus on PC, of the name of Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (or CS: CZ ). The editor clearly wished to provide to the player a solo mode worthy of their play headlight, with a scenario and a real interest. They called upon several studio of developments, until finding of them one judged satisfactory to finish work. Because the contents started with the first studio, Rogue Entertainment, passed then in the hands of the second, Gearbox Software, which added to it things, then with the third studio, Ritual Entertainment, which also added things to it, for finally arriving until the fourth and last studio, Turtle Rock Studios. Thus, its exit was initially announced for the summer 2002, but it was pushed back with many recoveries, and the play left finally on March 26th, 2004 concerned video. The play thus proposes a solo mode in which the player holds the role of antiterrorist, accompanied by four fellow-members, where the goal is to achieve certain objectives, vis-a-vis five terrorists, on the charts resulting from Counter-Strike 1.6 . The artificial intelligence is this effective time. It is accompanied by some new weapons (rocket launcher, kingpin…) and of tens of news skins . The multijouor mode as for him is the certified copy of the original play. The GoldSource engine is dated, and graphics of the play without surprises are thus exceeded, and very below the current plays at the time of its exit. Except Gen4 and its 90%, the press is of agreement on the value of the play: Gamekult.com and Canard PC allot one to him 4/10, and Video games Magazine one 12/20. The play costs 30 euros today.

Last following this day, Counter-Strike: Source (or CS: S ), left on October 7th, 2004 concerned video. The play is based on the Moteur play Source engine of Half-Life 2 . Graphics (textures, levels of detail…) were notably improved, as well as the interactions with the objects, thanks to the physical engine. The play gains thus in realism and is same graphic level as the current productions at the time of its exit. The operation of the play was modified but remains basically very close to the previous models. It is sold jointly with the play Half-Life 2 , but also in a version Stand-alone , sold with Half-Life 2: Deathmatch and Day off Defeat: Source for 30 euros. In spite of the apparent changes, this new version does not replace old the Counter-Strike . This continuation is been sulky besides many players complaining about the need for having a good configuration to play there. Certain players also find that the play, with the profit of its graphics, lost its in gameplay and the pleasure of play which resulted from this. Vis-a-vis this criticism, another play under development, CS Promod, promise the in gameplay of Counter-Strike 1.6 while preserving the graphic engine of Counter-Strike: source. This dissatisfied public also feels in the statistics, since the original play always holds 40% of the shares of players of Jeu of subjective shooting in line, followed CS: source with 29%. The press, as for it, appreciates the play: Joystick notes it 7/10 and ActuJeuxPC.net gives him one 14/20.

Around the play

Publicity in the play

Publicity in the video game, or in-range advertizing , is currently in full growth, in particular with the the United States where two thirds of the American men from 14 to 34 years play on consoles and computers. It is a market quantified to 80 million dollars, according to the Group Yankee, that is to say more than certain television programs, of the dynamic advertisements appear on the charts of play of Counter-Strike , incorporated in the decoration such of truths advertizing posters. These advertisements are the responsibility of the company IGA Worldwide, with which Valve Software signed a fine contract 2006, and which already deals with publicity in Battlefield 2142 . The principle of these dynamic “posters” is that they can be replaced at any time, since the parts of the play, lodged on waiters, proceed on Internet. They change thus regularly, and adapt to the public concerned (publicities will be in French if Steam is configured thus). Imposed to the players, these advertisements raised strong reactions, being testified in particular in the form of petitions in line or of messages to dissatisfaction on the official forums. But these publicities being rather discrete, and praising only products and related services with the video game (such as the play Portal of Valve or the Cyberathlete Professional League), a majority of players is not worried any really. The developers of these programs rest on sophisticated algorithms such as the networks of neurons. Unfortunately, these into club-footed tactiquement does not represent (and especially strategically) only one weak interest. On the other hand, they can prove to be a good drive for a player beginner.

There exist also illegal programs, like the Cheat S . They are external programs having for goal to give to the player an advantage that the others do not have, generally manner not envisaged by the original play. These programs make it possible to see through the walls ( in wallhack ), to aim directly the head ( in aimbot ), more quickly to run ( in speedhack ), such as their name, their weapons, their distance, if they reload, etc Valve set up a protection which names VAC (Valve Anti-Cheat) which makes it possible to banish the players using of the in cheats , detectable on Half-Life and its mods . Updates are made by Valve to prevent the operation of the in cheats , but those are very often reprogrammed.

Last types of programs, those intended for the improvement of the waiters of play. They improve the administration of a waiter and the in gameplay of the play by the addition of sound, statistics in real-time and configurations for the tournaments. AMX is one of the systems most used for the management of a waiter. It contains a great number of Plugin S: facility of management of the waiters, addition of novel modes of play, statistics, etc

See too

Related articles

• Half-Life , Counter-Strike: Condition Zero.
• famous Players:
• Tommy Ingemarsson alias Potti;
• Emil Christensen alias HeatoN.

Images and video

• promotional Image
• graphic Difference between CS 1.6 and CS: S on '' de_dust ''.
Video
• introducing to a continuation of '' frags '' known players.

External bonds

• Official site - official Handbook - FAQ official, on Internet Files.

• current official Page

Random links:

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